December 23rd, 2009
World Wide Wednesday: Buffalo, Los Angeles and Palma
By Kat Snukal // 1 Comment
Each week we will be focusing on blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.
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• Construction of a major Canal side redevelopment plan in Buffalo could begin by June of next year according to Buffalo's Business First Magazine. The $300 million project (funded with both public and private money) would transform a 20-acre stretch along the city's lower Main Street "into a mix of canals, shops, restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues".
• A recent article in Wired Magazine looks at the politicization of infrastrucutre spending in the United States. The "transportation-heavy" American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is receiving a major backlash from Americans fearful of government waste and overspending. The article muses on the consequence of this anti-spending campaign "for a country that simply must invest heavily in infrastructure" to survive.
• Los Angeles Downtown News has compiled a list of the city's 10 largest development blunders over the past decade. From unused rail stations to empty parks and vacant buildings the list provides an excellent lesson in how not to plan cities.
• The Polis Blog looks at attempts to revitalize the Corea neighborhood in Palma, Spain "a group of 26 .....buildings known for delinquency, drug use and social conflict..." asking whether revitalization can ever ameliorate (rather than just mask) a community's social and economic woes.
Photo of abandoned Hall of Justice in Los Angeles by Joe Decruyenaere
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Neither the author nor Spacing necessarily agree with the comments posted below. Spacing reserves the right to edit or delete comments entirely. See our Comment Policy.
I can't access the canalside (Buffalo) site, so little info. It sounds gimmicky to me. The real canals were the Erie on the US side "Albany to Buffalo" and the Welland in Ontario. It is the traces of this very real and key historical heritage that should be valorised.
There are some magnificent historic districts in Buffalo that are well worth a visit, despite that city's sad reputation for blight.
Comment by Maria Gatti
December 23, 2009 | 10:57 pm